Role of existing social protection programs to address child marriage in Bangladesh: Case of one union Parishad

Background: Bangladesh has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world. 65% of girls are married by their 18th birthday. Social Protection Program (SPP) is widely considered as one of the means to address child... [ view full abstract ]

Background: Bangladesh has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world. 65% of girls are married by their 18th birthday. Social Protection Program (SPP) is widely considered as one of the means to address child marriage. At present Bangladesh Government has more than hundred SPPs. One study has been conducted with the objective to explore the impact of existing SPPs to address child marriage in Bangladesh.
Methodology: Household Census, Focus Group Discussions, case studies, and Key Informant Interviews were conducted. Census covered all households having marriage events within one year in one union of Bangladesh. This study has only considered SPPs on following criteria: a. Publicly funded, b. Explicitly addressing child marriage and c. Can potentially contribute in neutralizing push factors.
Results: Only few programs are addressing lifecycle risks and vulnerabilities of children. Child centered SPPs are mostly focused on schooling with a meagre amount of fixed stipend. Child marriage rate at rural level is 66.5%. Earning capacity , social-economic status, and ‘moral character’ of grooms are key pull factors behind marriage of girl child, while concerns over safety and security, ‘free mixing’ with boys and family ‘honour’, uncertainty about ‘good job’ after education are key push factors. Girls are most vulnerable to get married at 16th and 17th year. 60.4% of the child brides are student. There is no significant differences in child marriage practices among the households, whether they receive one, multiple, or no SPP support.
Conclusion: Reducing child marriage requires comprehensive program, which includes appropriate SPPs with enough economic incentives and ensuring governance of administering birth and marriage registration. Existing norms related to child marriage should be addressed, and social awareness campaign should highlight legal, health and other negative consequences of child marriage that prevent a girl to realize her full human potential.